Celebrating a grand homecoming of sorts, 300 members of the Kodarvi clan were welcomed back to Mota Pipodara village in Gujarat’s Banaskantha district—11 years after they were forced to flee.
The return of 29 Kodarvi families was the result of a sustained effort by Banaskantha Police. Gujarat’s Minister of State for Home, Harsh Sanghavi, attended the village event marking their return.
According to a report published by a national newspaper, the breakthrough came last month during a casual chat involving Alka, a cook, and her employer, ASP Suman Nala, posted in the Danta division.
When Nala inquired about Alka’s family and how often she visited her marital home, Alka shared a painful past. She said that in 2014, following a murder accusation against a distant relative, her entire extended family—part of the Kodarvi community—was forced to leave their village overnight due to a tribal tradition known as Chadotaru.
Under this custom, in the event of a murder, either compensation (referred to by Nala as “blood money”) is paid to the victim’s family, or the offender’s entire family must go into exile.
The report added that Alka explained that the Kodarvis, once landowners in Mota Pipodara, had since scattered—many now working as farm labourers in nearby villages or as diamond polishers in Surat. Her own husband, she added, worked in a polishing unit in Surat.
Unbeknownst to ASP Nala at the time, the Kodarvi elders had recently submitted an application to the police requesting assistance to return to their village. On hearing Alka’s account, Nala alerted Banaskantha Superintendent of Police, Akshayraj Makwana, who initiated further action.
Sub-inspector JR Desai from Hadad police station was tasked with gathering information about the displaced families. He made contact with them and facilitated dialogue with village panchayat members and elders from both communities involved. Desai later said that over the next 20 days, police personnel engaged with all parties to ensure peace and reconciliation.
Police found that the murder accused was acquitted in 2017. He had returned to the village and resumed life. His clan, however, remained in poverty.
After several rounds of talks, community leaders were promised goodwill for cooperation—and warned of legal action if they resisted.
This paved the way for the Kodarvis to return.
The Kodarvi families collectively owned approximately 8.5 hectares of farmland in the village. The police, in coordination with the District Inspector of Land Records, located and measured the land. SP Makwana later stated that the land, which had been barren and overgrown, was levelled and made ready for cultivation as part of the resettlement.
As of now, two houses have already been built. The remaining 27 families will get homes and basic amenities with help from the district administration, PM Awas Yojana, and social groups.
Many have already returned and set up temporary shelters. Others are expected soon.
The police-led effort has raised Rs 70 lakh to support the rehabilitation—Rs 30 lakh from NGOs and donations, and Rs 40 lakh from government grants.
As the village is accessible only on foot, funds have been approved for building a road, an officer confirmed.
From a kitchen conversation to a full-scale return, the Kodarvi families’ journey shows what empathy, persistence, and teamwork can achieve.
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